American COP May/June 2011 Digital Edition - Page 22

OFFICER sURvIvAl JOHN RUssO GETTING HOME IN THE sAME CONDITION YOU WENT TO WORk IN. Lock picking is more of an art compared to bashing your way in, but it takes plenty of practice to maintain proficiency. Think of all the locks you can practice on around your own house. Don’t believe every sign you read — keep your hallagan tool and breaching sledge on hand when they don’t really mean “welcome.” S omecopsequatebreachingwithaSWATentry;one definitionof“breach”is:to make a hole or opening in (something),whichprettymuchsumsupSWAT.Truth is,patrolofficersprobablybreachmoredoorsonadaily basisthananyone.Unfortunately,itwasn’tuntilIjoinedSWAT Ilearnedsomevaluabletechniquesonhowtodoitproperly. Copshaveliterallybeenkickingindoorsforcenturies, butasdoorsandlocksarebuiltbetterandstronger,copsnow injurethemselvesmoreastheytrytokickorramtheirshoulder throughdoors.Sohowdowecontinuetoforceourwayinto buildings—safely,efficientlyand,insomeways,cheaply? Not Just For SWAT Guys Learning To Read Breaching For Patrol If you can’t afford tools specifically designed for making entry, there’s no reason you can’t pick up tools such as these from your local hardware store. The less money you spend on the tool, the more you’ll have to spend on duct tape … U nlesslivesareatstakeandyouhavenootheroptions, don’tgorammingyourshoulderintoanything.Ifyou havetokickadoor,useamulekicknotafrontkick; you’relesslikelytoinjureyourselfandyou’llgeneratemorepower.Ifthere’snourgency,setaperimeterandthen workonthedoor.Agoodruleofthumbis:try, pry then break. You’llhavetoknowhowtoreadadoor—asidefromthe obvious,“Mens,”“Ladies”or“DoNotEnter.”Besuretotry theknobfirst.Ialwaysgetachucklewatchingaguytrytoram adooronlytohavesomeonewalkupandsimplyturntheknob! Whetheryou’reinoroutsideofabuildingorroom,thinkof makingentryasfollows. Ifadoorswingsaway fromyouwhileopeningit,youneed toramit.Ifthedoorswingstowardyouwhileopeningit,you needtopryit.Butyouhavetolookforcluesforwhichdirection thedoorwillopen.First,lookfortheknob,andthenlookforthe hinges;ifyoucan’tseethem,thedoorshouldswingawayfrom you.Ifyoucan’topenitbyhand,thengogetsometools. KicK, Ram, PRy OR PicK i fyou’regoingtoramorkickadoor,strikeitjustabove,just beloworjustinsidethelockingmechanism.Donothitthe doorknob;aramwillprobablyjustskipoffandinjureyou whilethedoorholdstight.I’vealsoseentheentireknob assemblyshootthroughthedoorintotheroomwhilethedoor remainslocked.Ifyoumeetresistancewhenrammingadoor, youcangoafterthehingeside.You’dbesurprisedhoweasya doorcanbeknockedoffitshingeswithagoodramorsledge. Forsecurityscreendoors,thisiswheretheprytoolisreally essential.Whenyouramadoor,youcausethelocktosplinterthedoorframewoodasit’srippedfromthedoorjam.You won’tbeabletodothiswithasteelsecuritydoorframe,so you’llwanttoprythedoorawayfromtheframefarenough toopenit.Ahigherqualitydoormaynotbudgesoattackthe frameitself—whereitmeetsthehouse.Manyinstallersonly useshortscrewswheninstallingtheframetothehouseand WWW.AMERICANCOPMAGAZINE.COM • MAY/JUNE 2011 22